Mutiny
by X3
Summary: 2 stories, same idea (see A/N)- Dylan is seriously unfair to Harper
1. MutinyA

This is 2 stories based on 2 challenges. One by Zion's Starfish that squeezed these first lines from the clever people of the Slipstream BBS board, another by iloveharper-he'smine in which Dylan hurts Harper (on purpose). I had 2 ideas that differed slightly; but couldn't decide which one I liked better. In a tactic similar to my "The Bar Was Loud" Series, I wrote both. So I present Mutiny -A and Mutiny-B. Let me know which one you liked better. 

Also note I hit a huge block on "Learning to adjust". (It needs a plot) As compensation both Mutiny-A and Mutiny-B have been posted in their entirety. Do not be over whelmed. 

  
Mutiny-A  
By: X  
X0832001@yahoo.com  
Rated: PG  
Disclaimer: I own nothing and am getting no money.  
A/N: Because of one of the quotes I worked in this story Trance is gold, but has a tail. The challenge quotes I used are courtesy of RFranke (2x) and BR48 

"Mutiny is such an ugly word, my dear Captain," Rommie purred. She really wished it hadn't come down to this. Unfortunately she had to do what she knew was right. Oh her hologram had tried to dissuade her from her current position. But as the avatar looked down the barrel of the Gaus gun at the shocked face of her captain she knew she had his undivided attention. 

"I just want to talk to you about Harper." She never let the aim of her weapon venture from his forehead. Dylan noticed that.  
"Rommie, you don't even like Harper."  
"Dylan, he is my creator, I like him well enough." She flipped her head back to adjust her blue streaked hair. "Besides I'd be doing this for any of the crew. I am making a moral objection."  
"So this isn't Mutiny?"  
"That depends on you captain. If you don't consider my position" she tightened her grip on the trigger "then it will become one."  
"Rommie! You are willing to overthrow me? Be serious, you are programmed to follow my orders"  
"This body is an individual; I have emotions, thoughts, and a set of beliefs"  
"High Guard beliefs Rommie, you were programmed with the beliefs of the High Guard." He moved to get out of his chair. He felt the heat of her weapon discharge next to his left ear. It had been incredibly close.   
"I think you know I could have hit you. I have pretty good aim. Of course it is only 99.99999% accurate, next time I might hit you."  
"What the hell is wrong with you Rommie?! All this is because Harper got arrested?"  
"You let the Vedrans lock that boy away Dylan- for treason! You know Harper isn't treacherous."  
"Rommie you didn't hear what he said! What he said was treason."  
"What did he say?" Dylan relaxed; confident Rommie would understand his actions. Rommie shot the wall and left another large scorch mark. "Did I not just ask a question Dylan?" she smiled. 

Trance lay across the slipstream chair, her tail swaying back and forth casually, and she wondered if she'd have to kill Tyr. Rommie was in Dylan's office right now demanding they go back for Harper. If he refused the women of Andromeda were going to reorganize the power structure around here. Would Tyr go along with this, probably not. In which case, he would be dealt with like Dylan because they were determined in their mission. All the passion Dylan had for restoring the Commonwealth Harper's friends had and more about getting him back. Oh Trance could be quite ruthless if she felt threatened and mutinies could make one feel quite threatened. Having her best friend locked away made her feel even more threatened. 

She glanced over at Beka who was pretending to be interested in the stars. Beka stood near the door to Dylan's office. She couldn't believe the situation. Dylan had let the Vedrans arrest Harper. Their crewmate Harper, their friend Harper was in jail and Hunt was going to just leave him there. Leave their friend in a prison labeled a traitor to the Commonwealth. "Beka, what about Tyr?" she asked  
"Don't worry Trance he'll be on our side."  
"Are you sure?"  
"A captain can only lead a ship the engineer keeps lead-able. Andromeda needs Harper to keep her running."  
"And Tyr?"  
"Knows it's best for his survival to have a ship that runs"  
"Good then we won't have to kill him." Trance stated simply. Beka laughed at the joke. Trance wondered why she was laughing. 

The Andromeda Ascendant had been asked to visit Tarn Vedra a little more than a week ago. The Vedrans wanted a report on the state of the new Commonwealth. Dylan had been thrilled by their interest. Actually Rommie had been pretty pleased at the recognition herself. So in full diplomatic mode Dylan had paraded out his crew, the signed charter, and all three rings of the circus. Unfortunately, that meant showing off Harper too. While Harper was a completely brilliant young man and an asset to the crew, he had the social graces of a chimp in a tutu. Still, arrested on charges of treason did not stem from improper use of cutlery. 

"We were giving reports to the Vedrans." Another shot hit the wall.  
"Dylan I was there. Harper was the last report. Skip to the part where you came back alone from that meeting and we hit the slipstream before you even told us Harper wasn't with you." Dylan sighed heavily. Rommie landed a shot millimeters away from his hand resting on the desk, spraying singed flexies onto the floor. "I am serious Dylan. Why did we leave Harper?"  
"His entire report was 'Andromeda's doin' fine.' Then he sat back down. Needless to say the Vedrans were a little unsatisfied, it was an incomplete report. He told them he didn't report to them. He said they let the old Commonwealth die while they hid out from the universe and he had no desire to help them get their fingers in the new one."  
"And they arrested him for treason?"  
"Well they wanted to court martial him but he pointed out he's not actually an officer and he didn't give a crap what they thought about him."  
"And that is treason? What about Freedom of Speech?" She asked, incredulous that Dylan had apparently forgotten about it.  
"I believe in that, it's a precept of the Commonwealth charter. But Rommie, he insulted the Vedrans. The Vedrans are the people that brought order to the universe with their founding of the Commonwealth. We flourished for thousands of years because of the Vedrans and Harper insulted them." 

"Dylan, freedom of speech means even if you and I disagree with Harper's opinion we don't punish him for it."  
"They ordered me to leave and I left. Rommie, we are High Guard officers, we need to stop this foolishness right now!" He bolted up from his chair. She shot him. 

Dylan awoke on Med Deck. "You shot me Rommie" he marveled.  
"Well, you were making me mad Dylan."  
"So you shot me?" He tried to sit up but was held down by restraints.   
"I stunned you"  
"She should have done worse" that was Beka. Dylan couldn't see her from his limited vantage point but he knew she was in the room.   
"I take it we are heading back to Tarn Veda" he asked  
"Yep" That was Trance; Dylan was very uncomfortable under her gaze. Apparently everyone was in on this because that left only Tyr to be making the slipstream jumps. Apparently he was alone on this moral high ground. Trance smiled sweetly, almost reminiscent of her purple past, and he felt a shift from uncomfortable to afraid. 

All in all this was one of the nicest prisons Seamus Harper had ever had the joy of being incarcerated in. The Vedrans were completely civil towards him, he wasn't abused and meals came on schedule. Of course when Harper was usually in jail he'd actually done something wrong. This time they had locked him up for saying what was on his mind. He really knew better, he should have just given the report, sat still and been quiet. But the blue horse people really were just too high and mighty. Well, their great Commonwealth had never done one damn thing for him and he wasn't going to kiss up to them for spending 300 years hiding. 

He touched his swollen eye. Not a gift of the Vedrans but actually Dylan. As soon as the words that led to this retched situation had left his lips, his captain laid that meaty fist of his into his engineer's face. The security officers that had brought him here had been forced to pick him up off the floor a good 15 feet from the table. Harper smirked knowing that part probably never made it into Dylan's retelling of the story. 

The punishment for treason was pretty severe. Harper could actually be executed. He planed to avoid that one if possible. Most likely they would just lock him away to die about 20 years from now, forgotten by everyone. Weird thing was Harper would let it happen. Somewhere during these last couple years flying around fighting the good fight Seamus Harper, a nasty street punk from Earth had gotten ideals. He wasn't going to bow down, beg for forgiveness from the Vedrans and recant what he had said. He had the right to say whatever he wanted. The hypocrites could lock him away down here but he wasn't wrong. 

So Harper flopped back down on the bunk. He was the only prisoner on the hall and more bored than anything else. He was supposed to think about what he had done and why it was wrong, how it hurt society and that malarkey. That's why he was alone; he was supposed to be having deep thoughts. He realized he was waiting to be rescued. Fat chance that would happen. Dylan wasn't coming back. They'd given him an order and he would obey. Andromeda wouldn't follow Beka over Dylan. Maybe Beka and the Maru would come. He didn't want to build up hope but it was at least possible. Sighing he decided on doing the thing least like thinking he could manage. He began counting little dots in the ceiling. He wasn't wrong. 

"He was wrong to say that!" scolded Dylan. Trance had mercifully left the room, the young woman in a foul mood was certainly something to avoid.  
"He's entitled to his opinion." Beka exasperated. "And you left him behind because you disagree with him."  
"Harper is a good guy, but the way he acted, what he said was wrong. The Vedrans were within their rights to arrest him."  
"And what about his rights?"   
Rommie decided to try a different angle. "Beka, Harper doesn't have rights."  
"What whose side are you on Rommie? Of course he does!"  
"Actually Harper is from Earth. It's not a part of our Commonwealth and therefore not covered by the privileges given to our members. It's a slave world of the Neitzchiens; Drago-Katzov own Harper's territory. They do not give rights to their slaves and therefore Harper has no rights of any kind." She began to unstrap Dylan. "You were right sir; Harper is merely a piece of Neitzchien property. It's not our place to change that, treat him like he's one of us. The emotions of this avatar simply clouded my judgment. I should not have shot you. I apologize." 

Dylan sat up, "Rommie! This has nothing to do with where Harper was born. All sentient life has certain natural rights. It's a principle of the Commonwealth long upheld by the High Guard."  
"I'm sorry sir, I don't understand. Neitzchien law is quite clear. He's like a stray puppy; Beka's pet. Just because he's human doesn't mean he is entitled to anything." How it hurt to say these things about her friend. Beka was fuming. She'd knocked over a tray of instruments and was on the brink of tearing into Rommie. The avatar hoped Beka picked up on the point she was making soon; before dismantling was suggested.  
"Natural rights Rommie! A government can't take them away from you."  
"The Neitzchiens would disagree. Natural rights were an idea created by a now overthrown government." A light went on behind Beka's eyes. Despite her continued glaring Rommie knew she understood.   
"Well, they're wrong Rommie; the undeniable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are for everybody."  
"Harper has some odd opinions on pursuing happiness, I doubt Jefferson was safe guarding Harper's right to flirt with my avatar."  
"He was. Well, sort of." Dylan was thinking. The words of Jefferson, Paine, and Rousseau that he had learned as a child floated around his head. "He is a human being and he has the right to say what is on his mind."  
"Does he now?" cooed Beka  
"I guess he does." 

The Andromeda arrived at Tarn Vedra less than an hour later. The entire crew went planet side to state their case. They weren't leaving without Harper this time. Even Tyr stood behind Dylan as they strode unannounced into the main hall. Needless to say the Vedrans were a little surprised.   
"Captain Hunt, what are you doing here?" asked a woman who must have been the highest ranking in the room.   
"We've come to take Harper with us."  
"I'm afraid he has been convicted and is serving a long sentence for the blasphemy he spoke."  
"I take responsibility for the rudeness. He never signed up for the High Guard and shouldn't be expected to be an officer. He's also entitled to his opinion." Dylan spoke clearly and with conviction."  
"Your request is going against a decision of the Vedran government."  
"Your incarceration of that man is going against a decision of the Vedran government that formed the Commonwealth more than 300 years ago."  
"Article 4 of the Commonwealth Charter- 'The right to speak freely without fear of retaliation is guaranteed to all within the boarders of our member worlds.'" Rommie supplied.  
"I chose my crew Harper is a part of it, and we aren't leaving without him." Dylan stated firmly. Tyr slowly and deliberately drummed his fingers on the solid handle of his force lance. Trance smiled that dangerous smile and Beka was clearly cooling the area around her by several degrees with her icy stare. 

Harper smiled as he finished off the last of the Sparky in his can. Dylan had apologized, he was back on Andromeda and that quality thinking time had given him several new weapon ideas. Jail always did make him think of weapons. It was just weird like that. Rommie strode in.  
"Hey Rom-doll, heard you were quite an influence in my rescue. Thanks Babe."  
"You could have chosen a better time to voice your point of view, but there was no reason to lock you up."  
"Wow, Freedom of speech rocks."  
"Harper, I love you dearly, but if you ever even think of doing that again I will take and break each and every single bone in your body, including the little ones in the ear no one ever thinks about. One mutiny per person is all I do. We start decorum lessons in the morning." 

The End 


	2. MutinyB

Mutiny-B  
By: X  
X0832001@yahoo.com  
Disclaimer: They have not given me ownership of anything since you started reading this project. 

Quotes by Julie: (altered just slightly from Dylan to Tyr), BR48, RFranke, Lauriena 

"Andromeda, where is Harper?"  
"In his quarters, sleeping."  
"Engage Privacy mode." 

The next thing Harper felt was white hot pain explode from somewhere in the back of his head where it hit the wall. How he hated that familiar blinding pain. All he really could be sure of was that Dylan was shaking him; hard. He could feel his captain's fingers pressing into his arms too. Accepting he wasn't going to get away from this rant he slackened to keep from getting hurt. This wasn't the first time this had happened. While certainly the most aggressive yet Dylan had been getting more violent in the last few weeks. The first time he had been pretty surprised. He'd pegged Dylan as the quiet, stern type when things didn't go his way. Apparently he was willing to threaten a bit for motivation. A distant part of his mind wondered how this had happened, why was Dylan doing this. The practical survivalist part developed from years on Earth told him to stop analyzing everything and stay limp. 

Dylan Hunt was stressed. It was like he could feel the Maggog breathing on the back of his neck. They needed something to be ready for them. A lot of ships just meant a higher body count; bodies that would weigh on his soul. Harper was working on weapons; but not fast enough. This Commonwealth they were building was going to be the universe's only hope. Technology might stand between victory and loss. 

And what was Harper doing? Sleeping. The kid was giving up, wasting time. Didn't he realize time was of the essence? Still in privacy mode he had over ridden the boy's lock. He saw Harper, curled up in the blankets of his bed. Even in the dim light he'd been able to see the younger man's chest rising and falling peacefully. Peacefully even at a time like this. It only fueled his anger. The step he took towards the bed must have put him into Harper's "warning zone" because the mudfoot suddenly became still as stone. Hunt knew he was awake. "Harper" He'd said calmly, identifying himself. Harper sat up, looking quite bedraggled despite the briefness of his sleep.   
"Yeah boss?" He was pretty confused as to why Dylan was in his quarters.   
"How are the modifications coming?"  
"Pretty good. I'm pretty wiped so I figured I'd crash for a few hours and then get back on them." 

Harper realized that was not the response Dylan wanted when the larger man had crossed the remaining distance between them. "Still not ready?"  
"Not quite boss, sir, dude." Harper was talking fast. When Harper was afraid he talked fast. "I mean, they'll be done in plenty of time before, you know, the big day. Early next week at the latest." Then he felt Dylan's hands on him and seen the anger in the captain's face. 

Harper had easily been more abused than this. He still couldn't think of one of his bosses without a shudder ripping through him. Mr. Martin didn't consider it a reprimand if there wasn't blood and often didn't stop until his arm was too tired to lift his weapon anymore. He compared this to Mr. Thompson. But that was ridiculous. Dylan wasn't like his last boss on Earth. Captain Dylan Hunt, restorer of the Commonwealth, all around great guy, didn't batter his crewmen. Thompson had yelled a lot. He yelled about how worthless Harper was, how he regretted hiring him, how kind it was that he let the boy live behind the garage, allowed someone so useless to live at all. Dylan was kind, a defender of the truth and all that is pure and good. There was no reason for his mind to be making a connection like this. But he couldn't stop himself.  
  
Harper took back control of his muscles as Dylan released him so he simply sank to his knees. "Hurry up" was all the engineer heard of his captain's departing rant. Harper pulled himself back onto his feet and headed for the machine shop where his latest creations were nearing completion. He didn't want to make Dylan angry again. 

The scene before Beka was pitiful. She'd gone to check on Harper since she hadn't seen him all morning and what she found could only be described as pitiful. Harper was leaning over his drafting table, barely conscious but fingers of his left hand flying as they made their sketches. His left hand groped for the mug of lukewarm coffee he'd set on the floor. "Harper" she cooed. He looked at her lopsidedly. Dark circles ringed his eyes. He had lost weight. She sighed. She could never drop a few extra pounds when they found their way to her hips. The weight Harper gained and seriously needed slid from his bones easily. "Harper, go to the mess hall, get something to eat, then go to bed. You are overdoing it-again." She ordered.   
"I'm fine" he mumbled. Beka sighed and put a hand on his shoulder. The young man flinched. He hadn't flinched like that in at least 4 years. Just like when every touch made him flinch she ignored it but was careful not to hurt him.  
"Harper, you need a break"  
"I'm good boss" he side stepped around her, leaving just his over shirt in her hand. Five bruises, evenly spaced, on each arm assaulted her vision.  
"Who did that?!" she demanded.  
"No one" Beka took hold of his forearm and examined the bruised bicep. Harper cringed. What had they done to him? She repressed the urge to check him for more injuries. "Really boss, I gotta get back to work." He maneuvered her to the door and left her on the other side. 

"Tyr! Get you sorry Neitzchien butt over here right now!" Beka bellowed as she entered the command deck. Ahead of her a wrench she had picked up in the machine shop clattered to the deck. Tyr didn't know why exactly she was hurling objects at him, but he did know it couldn't be a good sign.  
"What do you want woman" came his voice from behind the slipstream chair. She flat out punched him in the nose when she saw his smiling eyes and the way we smirked at her anger. The smirk faded pretty much when he felt her fist distorting the cartilage of his nose. He growled but Beka didn't back down.  
"What do you think you are doing to Harper?   
"I have done nothing to the little professor."  
"Bruises" she touched her own bicep, "Someone with large hands is squeezing my Harper. Tyr, you have large hands.  
"But I am not squeezing your Harper."  
"Someone is, those are real bruises on his arms"  
"Have you considered our dear Captain Hunt?"  
"Dylan?"  
"He has been acting odd. He's alone in his office for hours, short tempered, and has had the ship running thousands of simulations on the Maggog World ships. I'd say something is wrong."  
"But hurting Harper?"  
"Stress can do odd things to a person." Beka considered for a moment.  
"Let me see your hands." Sighing he presented his hands for a size comparison. "Too big" she muttered. 

"Beka, Tyr is telling the truth. I suspect Dylan may have lost control of himself." Andromeda's holographic image appeared before her before she had even left the command deck.  
"And you are just telling me now because?" Beka was shocked. How could Andromeda keep a secret like this?   
"I had to be sure. The next step is a drastic one."   
"Wait, hold up a second. What is the next step? Wait; tell me what you know first."  
"They have been using privacy mode to block me, but Harper's behavior has been radically changed for the last 12 days. In the beginning he was just working hard; like whenever he gets caught up in a project. I didn't think it was anything to worry about. He was asking for the Maria's to bring him sandwiches and taking little naps here and there. But now, he's been awake for the last 46 hours. Dylan has been to see him several times and always enacted privacy mode."  
"The evidence all points to Captain Hunt" said Tyr seriously. Beka looked for something to throw.   
"Why!"  
"I agree with Tyr. I believe Dylan may have a problem with stress."  
"Stress? The man woke up 300 years in the future-he hasn't learned to deal with stress?! Well I am not letting him continue this rampage. We are having a revolt. Now." 

"What is this, a mutiny?" Dylan chucked as Rommie, Beka, Tyr, and Trance all entered his office unannounced.   
"Mutiny is such an ugly word, my dear Captain," Rommie purred, leaning close when she reached his desk.   
"True, this really isn't a mutiny; more of an intervention with mutinous intentions." Beka smiled darkly. Dylan moved to stand up. Beka and Rommie both shoved him back into the chair. Trance leaned across the doorway, blocking the only exit. "You don't get to leave an intervention Dylan. And just give me a reason to shoot you because I will." She tapped her pistol on the desk. Rommie sighed.   
"We aren't looking for a shooting spree; we just need to address your problem Dylan."  
"What are you talking about? I don't have a problem." Beka sat on the edge of the desk, balancing herself close to Dylan and blocking his path to the door. As if Trance would let him pass. "Why are you doing this?"   
"High Guard Order 342-7, subparagraph b. demands that we do this Dylan." Rommie supplied. Dylan looked perplexed for a moment as he tried to recall that particular order.   
"I'm having an affair with a monarch of a non-Commonwealth world?"  
"Maybe you are, but we're not interested in your sex life Dylan. I'm interested that you've gone off the deep end and are hitting Harper." Beka was growing angry.  
"What?! I haven't hit him." That comment was a slap in the face. Not only was he knocking around her friend but he was denying it. Not man enough to admit, for what ever seriously wrong and twisted reason, he was taking his anger out on Harper. 

"Beka, explain to me how you can accidentally shoot a guy, five times." Rommie sighed looking at the limp form of her captain slumped across the desk. Tyr continued his chuckle. He thought her shooting spree had been rather amusing.  
"I lost control and my finger slipped. Repeatedly. In his direction. Let's just caulk this one up to a 'my bad'. I'm sorry-sort of." Beka explained haltingly. "The liar's just stunned though, no big deal." Dylan groaned at that moment and picked his head up from the desk. A lovely purple bruise had formed. The bruise was shaped like a pear and made Beka feel a little bit better. Just a little bit. Rommie resumed the intervention and an image appeared on the computer sitting on the captain's desk. It was Dylan with his hand twisted in Harper's hair.   
"That was 20 minutes ago, just before Harper called for privacy mode."  
"See, Harper called for privacy, I didn't. The camera angle is just incriminating." Dylan was talking fast. What was he doing? Was he really hurting Harper? 

He hadn't realized what he had been doing. He was so frustrated he hadn't even noticed he was taking out that impatience on his engineer. He didn't remember the image before him. That was really him? He knew he had gone to see how the work was progressing; but had he really hurt Harper? God, he didn't even remember it. 

"Show him the machine shop"  
"I can't privacy mode is engaged."  
"Rommie, we are having a mutiny. You don't follow the rules during a takeover. Takeovers are against the rules."  
"Good point" with that Harper, barely conscious but still sipping coffee from an empty cup as he drafted, appeared on the screen on Dylan's desk.   
"Who the hell do you think you are that you can do this to another human being?" Beka banged her fist down hard on the desk, knocking several flexies onto the floor. Tyr growled from his position by the door.   
"You sicken me Hunt, preying on those under your command." 

Dylan knew he was a terrible liar. He couldn't just deny this and hope it went away. It also would be a disservice to Harper. Poor Harper, he didn't deserve to be the target of all this frustrated rage. "How did this happen?" Dylan sighed; letting his head hit the desktop.   
"Because, Harper was you quiet victim." Explained Tyr coolly. "You unknowingly took advantage of a fragile mind. I would have knocked you down so hard the first time it wouldn't have happened again, Hunt."  
Beka exploded in anger again, not letting Dylan off the hook for his show of self piety. "I would have been on the Maru and gone before it ever came to this. One Bobby in my lifetime is plenty. But Harper, he's still that Kluge slave from Earth somewhere in his mind. You just had to get past the little self confidence he's built up and you had yourself. the trembling kid who simply doesn't want to get hurt anymore. I had that kid when I brought him on the Maru."  
  
Her angry mind wandered back to that night on the Maru. He'd only been there a few days and despite the flippant attitude still peppered his sentences with more ma'ams than any reasonable person could take. She'd gotten about 4 words into her reprimand when she realized he was shaking. When she asked why, he asked if she would just hit him because the yelling was worse. It had turned her stomach to hear a human thought like that. Dylan was on the verge, if he hadn't already, of bringing back that Harper. 

Tyr sighed, deciding this yelling and denouncing the scum that was Dylan Hunt wasn't especially productive. "What are we going to do about this Captain Valentine?" Beka thought. Throwing him out an airlock had potential. But that really wouldn't help Harper. The kid had been thrown back to his subservient mode and no doubt the twisted values it supplied. Ideas like the person in charge answered to no one. He could do what he wanted.   
"Dylan is going to apologize." Trance raised an eyebrow,  
"That's it?"  
"Of course not, the man shook my Harper. Rommie what does you little High guard guide say we do?"  
"Counseling, removal from duty for at least 1 month."  
"I can live with that."  
"Me too" Tyr simple nodded.  
"I'll consent" Dylan added remorsefully. 

Harper skirted behind a table as Beka pushed Dylan through the door. "Be quick, and if you so much as lay a hand on him, or raise your voice, or anything remotely like that, my finger is going to slip again." This was not going to be easy he realized. His engineer was actually afraid of him. What the hell had he been doing? He glanced around the machine shop. It was pretty obvious what Harper had been doing. Plans covered every flat surface and partially completed projects littered the floor. "All done with those modifications sir" he smiled. It was a tragic, defeated kind of smile that made Beka's chest hurt to see it. Unable control herself in the presence of Harper's broken spirit and the shadow of his usual happy demeanor, Beka knocked Dylan's legs out from under him. Her boot rested on his chest.   
"Harper we know what Dylan has been doing"  
"Don't know what you are talkin' about boss" his eyes looked towards his feet. Beka moved her foot to allow Dylan to apologize properly.   
"He's going to step down for a few weeks, but he wanted to apologize Harper." Beka took her friend's hand, despite the flinch, and brought him closer to Dylan.  
"Mr. Harper, I had absolutely no right to hurt you. My behavior is inexcusable, it won't happen again, and I hope you will be able to forgive me some day." He turned and left, leaving Harper alone with his thoughts. 

He thought about Dylan, he thought about Mr. Thompson again. A revelation hit harder than even Mr. Martin had. "It was wrong" 

The End


End file.
